The invention described herein was made in the performance of official duties by a employees of the Department of the Navy and may be manufactured, used, licensed by or for the Government for any governmental purpose without payment of any royalties thereon.
The invention relates generally to payload delivery systems, and more particularly to an unmanned system that houses a payload and provides the means for controlling the payload.
Currently, operational payloads such as sensors, ordnance, unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs, unmanned undersea vehicles or UUVs, unmanned surface vehicles or USVs, and unmanned ground vehicles or UGVs, as well as sophisticated weapons such as smart bombs and small tactical missiles, are delivered and dispensed largely by highly specialized and expensive delivery platforms. For the military, this includes state-of-the-art bombers, fighter aircraft, warships, specialized transport ships, submarines and specialized ground vehicles. Most, if not all of these operational payloads, were developed and fielded to counter high-capability foes that also possess high-technology weaponry. However, delivery and dispensing of the payloads by largely manual methods (i.e., humans manipulate and operate the delivery platforms and payloads) and expensive apparatus (i.e., the specialized delivery platforms) is not cost-effective and efficient for all military applications. In cases where these methods and apparatus are applied against relatively low-technology and low-capability foes, any long drawn-out conflicts will ultimately impose significant financial and resource burdens on the military. Additionally, the wear and tear on the delivery platforms from repeated and extensive sorties reduces the useful life of the delivery platforms and increases their attrition.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a system for the delivery and control of an operational payload.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an unmanned system that can be used to deliver and control a variety of operational payloads.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a standardized system that can house and control an operational payload and that can be transported to a destination by a wide variety of existing delivery platforms.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a system that houses an operational payload and that provides for control of the operational payload from a remote location.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an unmanned system for the housing, delivery and dispensing of an operational payload.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious hereinafter in the specification and drawings.
In accordance with the present invention, an unmanned system for the delivery and control of an operational payload includes a standardized shipping container for housing the operational payload. A controller is mounted in the shipping container and is coupled to the operational payload for controlling functions thereof. Communication means are mounted in the shipping container and are coupled to the controller to provide for communication with the operational payload via the controller. Such communication can include hardwire connections and wireless connections.